Chief Stipe

Firstly Igraine winning the Grp 3 (Correction "Listed") Coloundra Cup on the back end of the Brisbane Winter Carnival is hardly earth shattering. Congratulations to Igraine and her connections but it is a bit like winning the Grp 3 Taranaki Cup in NZ. I see "she needed a soft track" to "assist her". As for your pseudo science. Do you have any statistics on the number of German bred horses that bled during racing in Germany? Plus as a percentage of the total number of horse race starts? Then provide the NZ stats and then we can draw some conclusions based on facts as opposed to assumptions. Your reference to WINX and Lasix is unfounded as she NEVER raced on Lasix.

So essentially what you are saying Barry is that winners by weight is evenly distributed relative to the number of horses at each weight. Which would infer that the handicappers are doing their job i.e. handicapping to give every horse a chance. Subsequently you can't factor in weight to determine "value" as it is pointless. However isn't it correct that over all races (not WFA) the highest weighted horses win the most races?

Romancer. Winners of four of the nine heats feature among the nominations for the Winter Championship Series Final, including the Grahame Begg-trained Romancer who has earned his shot at the Listed race with his last-start win at Flemington. The $160,000 VRC-CRV Winter Championship Final (1600m) is one of the features on Saturday and the 25 nominations include promising import Mr Marathon Man, Romancer, Spanner Head and Tan Tat Trusting who have all won one of the nine heats during the series. The Tony McEvoy-trained Tan Tat Trusting also holds an entry for the VRC-CRV Cup Tour Trophy over 2000m on Saturday’s program. Begg said Romancer was entitled to take his chance in Saturday’s race having earned a ballot exemption when he defeated Blazejowski on a soft track over 1400m at Flemington last Saturday week. That was five-year-old gelding Romancer’s second start of his preparation and second start since joining Begg’s stable. “He hasn’t disappointed me the whole time he’s been with me,” Begg said. “I thought he ran quite well first-up at Caulfield and obviously he won second-up for us. “I think he’s quite a useful horse and he’s probably in his right grade at this time of year because you’ve got to take advantages of horses who can handle soft ground. “His rating is still low enough to get him into a race like this on the lighter side.” The Mike Moroney-trained Mr Marathon Man, who won at Sandown last start, heads the weights with 60kg while Romancer gets in on the limit weight of 54kg. Romancer’s Flemington win came on a soft (7) rated track and Begg believes his best chance of success on Saturday is if he happened to strike similar conditions. Dean Yendall has been booked for the ride on Romancer, who has won six of his 26 career starts. “We’ve given him a pretty easy time since his last run,” Begg said. “He will gallop this week, probably on Wednesday, but we’re very happy with him.” Last year’s winner Magic Consol is among the nominations with 59.5kg while the 2017 winner Tshahitsi heads the weights for Saturday’s Victorian Sprint Series Final with 60kg. The Victorian Sprint Series Final (1200m) and the Taj Rossi Series Final (1600m) are the other two Listed races on the program. View the full article

Old Countess. Matamata trainers Peter and Jess Brosnan bypassed last Saturday’s Hastings meeting with their capable chaser Old Countess, but the mare is still on a Great Northern path. Old Countess was purposely absent from the line-up for the Hawke’s Bay Steeplechase (4800m), won by Perry Mason, however she will be back in action in the open 3500m steeplechase at Te Aroha on Sunday. “Hastings was always going to be too dry for her,” Peter Brosnan said. “She’ll be better suited at Te Aroha and after that we have a couple of options, either the Wellington Steeplechase or go to Te Rapa for an easier option. “The Great Northern Steeplechase (6400m) at Ellerslie in September is the one we’re after and she can run in the Pakuranga Hunt Cup (4900m) beforehand.” Old Countess won last year’s Wanganui Steeplechase (4100m) before being runner-up to Perry Mason in the Pakuranga Hunt Cup, which was run at Te Aroha, as was the Great Northern Steeplechase in which the daughter of Zed finished fifth to Chocolate Fish. “The Northern being at Ellerslie is going to suit her better than it did at Te Aroha,” Brosnan said. “We’ve won the Great Northern Hurdles (4190m) with Southern Countess (in 2011) and it would be great to get the Great Northern Steeples, too.” Brosnan’s father, Sam, also won a Great Northern Hurdles, with Mark’s Gold in 1981, and finished second in the 1978 Great Northern Steeplechase with Marji’s Gold. View the full article

Animator. Animator made the perfect start to his jumping career at Hastings on Saturday where he took out the Hawke’s Bay Hunt Maiden Hurdle (2500m). Trainer Brendon Hawtin was pleased with the victory, which adds to the gelding’ds six wins on the flat. “It was a good thrill on Saturday and one would think he could go on with it,” he said. “Overall his jumping was brilliant and he certainly ran out the 2500m really strong. There is plenty of upside that is for sure.” Hawtin started to put Animator over the fences as part of his training 18 months ago and he said the son of Encosta De Lago has been a natural from the very beginning. “Just with his antics in racing, hanging and that sort of thing, we just started popping him over the logs as part of his training and slowly moved up to the hurdles. “From day one he jumped really well and that was always going to be his forte. So far it has worked out well.” Animator had two hurdles trials at Cambridge in autumn and Hawtin was confident heading into Saturday after what he has seen from his gelding. “His first jumping trial we just wanted to get around safely and give him a good experience and he ran third,” Hawtin said. “Emily Farr, who has done a lot of the work on the horse, rode him there. “His second jumping trial was against the open hurdlers and we put a bit of pressure on him and he managed to win that, and his two flat runs since have been good to have him fit and ready for Saturday.” Hawtin said he is unsure of where he will head to next with Animator, but a return trip to the same meeting next season is on the cards for the promising jumper. “It’s hard when these maideners win a hurdle race. You sort of jump straight into the open grade and that can sometimes make things more difficult. “We haven’t got too many big plans for him this season, but next season you would like to think that he will be running in races like the Hawke’s Bay Hurdle (3500m). “He may well end up in Australia at some stage, but we are going to take it step-by-step at the moment.” View the full article

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So on that analysis you wouldn't have backed Makaybe Diva in her 2nd and 3rd Cups?

Seems that sites "owners" have given him carte Blanche or immunity!

Correct. But apparently he has all the "evidence"!

OZ handle this stuff better. I hope someone sues.

So its just an expensive "rebranding" exercise?

Katrina Alexander is making a return to the trainers ranks in the new season Katrina Alexander has been given the greatest incentive ever to return to the racehorse training ranks. Alexander, whose highlight among 113 wins as a trainer came with the 2003 Gr.1 Sydney Cup (3200m) victory of Honor Babe, has reapplied for her trainer’s licence to prepare a team from Hinuera Lodge in Matamata in partnership with her husband, Simon, who has also recently put in his trainer’s license application. Alexander relinquished her trainer’s license five years ago after their son, Jackson, was diagnosed with stage three melanoma skin cancer while in his last year at Napier Boys’ High School. The Alexander family has been through a highly emotional time as Jackson, or Jooky as known to friends and family, experienced a rollercoaster battle in his fight against the dreaded disease. Treatment increased as the cancer spread and his courage and determination saw him also fight through a snowboarding accident on Mt Ruapehu in September 2017, which left him freezing for 12 hours before being saved. But his battle was finally lost on June 6, just a fortnight short of his 23rd birthday. He passed away at the CHB Health Centre in Waipukurau surrounded by his family. It has been a heart-wrenching time for Jackson’s family and friends, particularly his parents and his two sisters, Sam and Jaimee. However, the family has rallied together to respond to Jackson’s wish –his mother’s return to training. “He called me in one day and said to me ‘I want you to resign and go and do what you want to do’,” Katrina Alexander said. “I had a good job at Westpac, but we’d talked about training again. It’s been a collective family decision and seeing what he (Jackson) went through you realise you’ve got to do what you want to do.” Alexander has shifted around with her husband as they cared for their cancer-suffering son and even made a shift to Adelaide last October where Jackson was to receive further treatment. Katrina Alexander, pictured with now retired jockey Noel Harris, is making a return to the trainers ranks in the new season – Race Images Katrina Alexander, pictured with now retired jockey Noel Harris, is making a return to the trainers ranks in the new season Race Images “But after six weeks there, Jackson just said ‘I don’t want to be here anymore’ so we packed up and came back home (Waipukurau),” Alexander said. “Now we’re shifting back up to Matamata and we’re all looking forward to it.” Though Alexander started her training career in Woodville in the 1997-98 season after learning the skills working for top trainer Murray Baker, she took her success to the top level when shifting to Matamata in 1998. She recorded the first of her five black type wins when Mi Babe was a Group Three winner at Ellerslie on Boxing Day, 1998. The filly had earlier recorded a couple of wins and a third in Gr.1 New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) between seconds in Gr.3 Desert Gold Stakes (1600m) and Gr.3 Eulogy Stakes (1600m). A couple of seasons later stablemate Nikisha won the Gr.2 Queen Elizabeth Handicap (2400m) at Ellerslie before finishing third in Our Unicorn’s Gr.1 Auckland Cup (3200m). Kalamata then emerged and Alexander hit the jackpot with Honor Babe. Kalamata won the 2003 Listed Waikato Stud Stakes (1200m) at Wanganui and later ran third in the 2004 Gr.1 Mudgway Partsworld Stakes (1400m) at Hastings to Starcraft and Miss Potential after being unbeaten in her four lead-up starts that campaign. Honor Babe went on to supercede Kalamata with six wins, including four on end culminating with victory in the 2003 Listed Marton Cup (2200m). She was then taken to Sydney where she was twice placed before crediting Alexander with her first Group One win in the 2003 Sydney Cup. Alexander still remembers her nervousness during Honor Babe’s Randwick triumph and she admits to a similar feeling in her comeback to training. “I’m looking forward to it, but there’s a little bit of nervousness,” she said. “Things have changed a bit since I gave up training, but I’m sure I’ll soon be back in the swing of it. “This time I’ll be in partnership with Simon and that’s good for him, too. He was always part of it when I was last training. He’s as keen as I am and so are our daughters, who will also be involved.” Alexander experienced her best season (win-wise) in 2005-06 with 22 winners and saddled up her last winner, Destiny Cover, at Trentham in October 2013. “The plan is to get our operation up and running by August 1,” she said. “We’ve got some of our old connections keen to send us horses so we’re hoping for the best.” View the full article

Shaune Ritchie is eyeing a Gr.1 Gavelhouse.com New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) tilt with Bella Mente Shaune Ritchie is hoping an annual winter stopover in Ruakaka will pave the way for an elusive win in the Gr.1 Gavelhouse.com New Zealand 1000 Guineas (1600m) at Riccarton in November. Each year the Cambridge trainer sends a team of horses north to further their preparations for spring campaigns and he already has the promising rising three-year-old fillies Bella Mente and Jennifer Eccles on the list to head to Ruakaka at the end of this month. “I’ve found it a great advantage at this time of year as, apart from being able to canter along the beach or just walk in the water, they also get to work on a beautiful track,” Ritchie said. “It pushes them a bit more forward and it’s worked well for me in past years. I usually have them up there for a minimum of 10 days and alternate by swapping them over when needed. “I usually send up eight or 10 and at this stage I’m still finalising the ones to go, though the definite ones are Bella Mente, Jennifer Eccles, The Good Fight, Swords Drawn and Excalibur.” Bella Mente and Jennifer Eccles have both had spells since last racing, Bella Mente being out for a couple of months since finishing a close third behind Yourdeel in the Gr.1 Manawatu Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) at Awapuni on March 30 and Jennifer Eccles having been put aside after a last-start third in the Listed Auckland Futurity Stakes (1400m) at Ellerslie on May 25. “They’re both exciting three-year-old prospects,” Ritchie said. “They’ve done well with their breaks and I’ll try and split them up when getting them ready for 1000 Guineas. “The 1000 Guineas is the one race I really want to win. The label races for three-year-olds are the four big Group Ones – the 2000 Guineas (1600m), the New Zealand Derby (2400m), the New Zealand Oaks (2400m) and the 1000 Guineas. “I’ve won the 2000 Guineas with Magic Cape, the Derby with Military Move and won the Oaks twice and got the quinella once. I won it with Keep The Peace and quinellaed it with Artistic and Zurella. I just need the 1000 Guineas to get the box set and I think I’ve got a big chance this year.” Ritchie finished second in the 2016 New Zealand 1000 Guineas with Bella Gioia and he believes her half-sister Bella Mente has the talent to go one better. Bella Mente won her second start at Matamata then returned to the scene to finish a creditable fourth behind Aretha in the Gr.2 Matamata Breeders’ Stakes (1200m) last February before going down a long neck and a neck in the Gr.1 Manawatu Sires’ Produce Stakes. “She’s come back in looking great,” Ritchie said. “She’s a lovely strong filly and the way she ran out the 1400m in the Sires’ Produce Stakes she should have no trouble with the 1600m at Riccarton.” Jennifer Eccles, a daughter of Rip Van Winkle, has finished third in both her starts. Her debut effort was at Matamata in early May after a trials win and she was beaten a long head and long neck by Rhaegar in the Auckland Futurity Stakes. Ritchie is also looking forward to spring-summer campaigns with The Good Fight, Swords Drawn and Excalibur. The Good Fight began the season as a maiden with a couple of seconds to his credit and after two wins he started favourite in the Dunstan Feeds Stayers Championship Final (2200m) at Ellerslie on New Year’s Day when charging home for second behind Starrybeel. The four-year-old son of High Chaparral and Australasian Group winner Pravda then stepped up to open company in the Karaka Cup (2200m) and was a solid fourth to Five To Midnight before making ground into ninth in the Gr.2 Avondale Cup (2400m), his last run of the campaign. “He’s got the makings of a good stayer,” Ritchie said. “We’ll try and work him through the grades and if he comes up well he could go to Melbourne. If not, he’s an ideal type for races like the Counties Cup and Waikato Cup.” Swords Drawn is a maiden with four placings from nine starts, but those placings include a second to subsequent Gr.1 New Zealand Derby (2400m) winner Crown Prosecutor in the Gr.3 Wellington Stakes (1600m) at Trentham and a third to Cutadeel in the Listed 3YO Salver (2100m) at Ellerslie. He later finished unplaced in the Listed Karaka Million 3YO Classic (1600m), the Gr.2 Avondale Guineas (2100m) and the New Zealand Derby. “He’s got the ability and he’s got the luxury of being a maiden so he can roll through the grades to get his confidence up,” Ritchie said. View the full article

The Devils Own. Don’t feel too miffed if you can’t really remember the best horse racing at Alexandra Park tonight. Because good horses don’t come much more forgotten than The Devils Own, who resumes in the $30,000 Smith And Partners Winter Cup. It wasn’t always that way though. Two years ago he was being touted as the next big thing in pacing, a very good juvenile who looked certain to be better at three. He paced a stunning 1:52.4 mile rate for 1950m winning the Sales Series Pace at Addington, beating Spankem and Alta Maestro but that May 2017 win was his last visit to the winner’s circle. That three-year-old season that promised so much saw the emergence of a better horse in Chase Auckland who dominated at home. Then The Devils Own finished third in a Victoria Derby but returned home soon after with hock and other soundness issues. His owners have given him plenty of time, well over a year away from the track, and transferred him from the All Stars to new trainer Brent Mangos to take advantage of Auckland stakes like the $30,000 tonight. And Mangos likes what the big horse has shown him. “He feels a like a good horse should,” he offers. “You can tell he has been a good horse in the past and the owners looked after him giving him all the time off so his legs have been great, no issues.” The Devils Own was given two quiet workouts by Mangos to start this campaign but it is his latest public outing that gave the Pukekohe trainer the most confidence The Devil Own can win fresh-up tonight. “I took him to Cambridge two weeks ago and it wasn’t so much a proper workout as him working with a galloping pacemaker,” explains Mangos. “But he did it very well. He paced his last 800m in 56.2 seconds, his final 400m in 27 around Cambridge and I think it has really brought him on. “We actually gave him a start from behind the tapes that day and while it spooked him a bit I think the small field will help him handle the stand this week. “He is a lovely big relaxed horse so the stand doesn’t worry me too much.” With the scratching of the in-form Check In and the fact key front line rival Blazen River is also fresh-up tonight, The Devils Own may well be able to get away his lack of race fitness tonight. Like the Winter Cup the main trot tonight is a small but interesting field but if Kenny’s Dream brings the same form she did last start she could make it four wins from five Alexandra Park starts. She arrived north in the care of Phil Williamson hardly rated a star but has been a huge improver and bolted in last start but she does meet a rival of similar talent in Credit Master tonight, although she has a head start and more consistent manners over him. Michael Guerin View the full article

Creatine Nevele R Stud wishes to advise harness racing breeders that unfortunately, on veterinary advice, the trotting stallion Creatine will not be shuttling to the Southern Hemisphere this coming breeding season. The stallion has recently aggravated an old suspensory injury and it was recommended that he not make the trip to New Zealand next month. Both Diamond Creek Farm and Nevele R Stud have Creatine’s best interests at heart and as such he will remain in North America in 2019. It is hoped that Nevele R will have frozen semen available this season, and that all going well he will return to New Zealand in the 2020-21 breeding season. In terms of the mares covered in the 2018-19 season, Nevele R’s normal free return policy will apply. Creatine is coming off his best North American season to date, having served his largest book of mares, in his third season at stud, in 2019. Although it is disappointing that the US Breeders Crown winner will not be standing in the flesh at Nevele R this year, we couldn’t be happier with the start that he has made to his siring career, with Creatine covering 191 mares in his first two seasons down-under and producing outstanding first crop foals that are a pleasure to work with. Reinforcing our confidence in Creatine too, is the fact that his sire, Andover Hall (whom is also available through Nevele R) is enjoying early success, particularly in Australia where he is the sire of two recent Group 1 winners and a number of leading Vicbred Super Series contenders. View the full article

Further from a "reliable source":

From a "reliable source": So my man at the RIU tells me they’ve got two rock solid “insiders” assisting the Police with this. I’m forbidden from mentioning their names because they’re Police informants ( and rats ) but I am allowed to ask for more information on the following people, and anything I should know about them in relation to this matter. As usual PM me ( and thanks to those who have so far ) 1. A guy named Justin Le Lievre, apparently he’s ex Trackside, and Police, and is predisposed to threatening people with violence ( don’t bother threatening me Justin, I’ll blow on you if you do ) How’s he involved in this and why ? 2. DS Neville Jenkins of Blue Magic fame. Said to be a close mate of Le Lievre and the original dobber KS. I’ve had a few dealings with Jenkins and found him to be evasive and less than frank / honest. To compound matters he described me as a “bully” Who's he mates with in the industry and why is he so heavily involved in this ? Has he any industry experience ? 3. The name Michael House keeps popping up, what does he do and how does he fit into this ? As always thanks for your support and information, PM me with your thoughts, and never forget, we’re here to fight the good fight for justice

Johnathan Parkes returns to the Hastings winner’s enclosure aboard Skarloey With just one win required to match his best tally for a season and just five wins behind National Jockey’s Premiership leader Lisa Allpress, you could be forgiven for thinking Johnathan Parkes was plotting a huge month in July. On the contrary, the popular Central Districts horseman is happy to just go with the flow and take a what will be will be attitude into the final weeks of the 2018/19 racing season. A winning treble at Hastings on the weekend saw Parkes notch his 117th victory for the season (he rode 118 winners in 2013/14), with a strike rate of 4.97, second only to Opie Bosson (4.48) in the top fourty riders on the premiership ladder. Despite that success Parkes admits he isn’t one to chase records or the like. “I’m really happy with how my season has gone but I’m not chasing the premiership or anything like that,” he said. “I’m not a natural lightweight so over the last couple of winters I’ve actually ridden a little heavier in the winter so I can look after myself. “I generally ride at around 54.5kg in the summer but in the winter now I’m walking around 56kgs. It is really tough to be wasting and the like in the winter so it’s better for me to ride at a weight I’m comfortable with. “I’ll be back to the lower weight once the spring rolls around but the extra weight limits what I can ride at this time of the year so things like chasing premierships etc. are not realistic, so I just don’t worry about it.” Given he is riding so well it seems odds on that he will break his personal best tally of wins for a season, a feat that Parkes will be pleased to achieve. “I’ve had a really good season and I’ve managed to get on some very nice horses,” he said. “I’ve had terrific support from trainers wherever I’ve ridden, including when I’ve gone either North or South to ride at the bigger carnivals and the like. “I’m very thankful for that support as without it you just don’t get the opportunities you need to be successful.” While other jockeys and trainers may be planning a mid-winter break in warmer climates, Parkes will be staying closer to home to see in the new season. “I know some jockeys head over to places like Fiji and the like towards the end of July but I’m happy staying here and riding right through,” he said. “There are good meetings coming up like the winter carnival in Christchurch so if I can get some good rides I’ll definitely be going there as I love riding at Riccarton. “Hopefully a horse like Comeback, who I’ve won a couple on, will go for the Winter Cup, (Gr.3, 1600m) as he is one I would definitely go down to ride. “In the meantime, I just want to be getting ready for another big season and hopefully getting on horses that can be competitive at the highest level which is what every jockey wants.” View the full article

Hello It’s Me returns to winning form at Ruakaka Progressive mare Hello It’s Me made her return to the racetrack a winning one when she took out the feature event at Ruakaka on Saturday, the Northpine Waipu Cup (1400m). The talented four-year-old hadn’t been seen since finishing well back in the Gr.2 Rich Hill Mile (1600m) at Ellerslie on New Year’s Day. That performance convinced trainers Chris Gibbs and Michelle Bradley that some time away would be in the mare’s best interest so she went to the paddock for a decent break. All indications were that the daughter of Darci Brahma was fit and ready to make her return on Saturday and so it proved as she raced away in the home straight for replacement rider Andrew Calder to win comfortably over Hanger and Go Nicholas. Co-trainer Michelle Bradley admitted she felt a mix of relief and elation with the result as she had been eagerly anticipating the mare’s return to the track. “It hadn’t been a good day up until then as we hadn’t put a winner on the board but all that changed with the performance that she (Hello It’s Me) delivered,” Bradley said. “I have just been so excited waiting to get her back to the track as she has been working well and we knew she was fit and ready to go first up. “To see her win like that was just so rewarding and great for her owners who have been so patient with her.” Bradley is now looking forward to the challenge of placing the mare to her best advantage over the coming months. “Now she is back, the hardest task will be finding the right races for her,” she said. “She is pretty versatile and with the win over 1400m first up it is likely we will go to a mile next for her. “We will sit down and discuss that as there are plenty of good races in the spring but it is a matter of keeping her in the zone and working our way to them. “The Hawke’s Bay spring carnival is in the back of our minds but that isn’t until the end of August so there is plenty of time before then.” The victory capped a winning double for Calder who had taken out the previous race on the Richard Collett-trained Von Trapp. He picked up the mount on Hello It’s Me after regular rider Cameron Lammas was stood down following race four after sustaining an elbow injury in the starting gates. View the full article

Poker Face (inner) provides Alysha Collett with her first winner since her return from injury A copybook effort aboard local runner Poker Face paved the way for talented rider Alysha Collett to make her long-awaited reappearance in the winner’s enclosure following an injury-enforced break from the jockey ranks. Collet sustained a serious injury to her L1 Lumbar vertebra, along with a fractured right heel when she fell from her mount at Kranji on October 14. Following successful spinal surgery, she spent the next six months recuperating in New Zealand before being cleared to return to race riding earlier this month. A somewhat frustrating run of twenty-six rides without a winner came to an end in the last race of the day at Ruakaka on Saturday as she punched home the Chris Gibbs and Michelle Bradley-trained Poker Face in the rating 82, 2100m contest. “It just feels so good to get the monkey off my back,” Collett said. “It hasn’t actually been that long but it seems like an eternity since I had my last winner given what has gone on. “I’ve been really thankful for the rides I have been getting since I started back and I knew it was just a matter of time until I got the win but I wanted it that much, it did start to get a little frustrating.” Collett was confident she had her best chance of a win with Poker Face after the five-year-old Jimmy Choux gelding had flown home for a fifth over a mile at Ruakaka a fortnight earlier. “He went a great race last time and both Chris and Michelle thought the step up to 2100m on Saturday would be perfect for him,” she said. “We had a good draw which meant I could get him into a nice position on the fence and when he got the gap on the fence, he really charged home. “It was such a great feeling to finally get that win on the board.” Collett has a busy month coming up as she waits for her visa to come through so she can make her return to riding in Singapore. “I’m going to ride here for another week or so then I’m having a ten-day holiday after that,” she said. “When I get back, I will start riding here again but hopefully by then my visa for Singapore will have come through. “Without the visa it puts your plans up in the air a little but if I can get that sorted out before the start of the new New Zealand season that would be a big help.” View the full article

Igraine cruises to victory on the Sunshine Coast A return to a soft track helped Kiwi mare Igraine (Galileo) score a consolation win in the $175,000 Listed Caloundra Cup (2400m) on Saturday. Trainer Robert Priscott brought Igraine to Queensland with the Brisbane Cup at Eagle Farm three weeks ago as her main aim. However, she was never in the hunt after being blocked for runs in the straight to finish 12th. Priscott said he expected a much better run in the Caloundra Cup, especially when rain fell all week. He was proved right when Igraine was far too good scoring by 2-1/4 lengths to Sopressa (So You Think) with 1-1/4 lengths to Travistee (NZ) (Tavistock) in third. “She had no luck at her start in the Brisbane Cup after she had run two good races in the lead up. But she likes the track to have some give and she got that today,” Priscott said. “We can head down to Grafton now for their Cup (July 11) which should suit her as well. Then she is staying in Australia to go to stud.” Priscott is best known in Australia for his Group One mare Hill of Grace, who raced well in the Spring carnivals about 20 years ago. “I have been to Queensland occasionally with some horses and last time I was here a few years back I had a two-year-old filly Diamond Deck who ran some good placings,” Priscott said. Winning jockey Robbie Fradd battled a cold all day before pulling out a superb ride to win on Igraine. “The horse is tough and so is the jockey. She was well turned out and the hard tracks had been the undoing of her,” he said. “One thing you know the Kiwis can train a stayer.” Matt McGillivray tried hard to steal the race by leading all of the way on Sopressa. “It was only in the final 150 metres the winner proved too strong,” he said. Trainer Paul Jenkins was thrilled with the third of Travistee, who was backing up from last week’s Tattersall’s Cup. “He is only just out of restricted class,” he said. -AAP View the full article

Impressive Ruakaka two-year-old winner Zelenski Local trainers Kenny Rae and his daughter Krystal Williams-Tuhoro made the best possible start to their day when they produced a winning double to open proceedings at Ruakaka on Saturday. Just thirty minutes after two-year-old Zelenski upset the applecart when downing hot favourite Jager Bombed over 1000m in the first race on the day, lightly raced filly Viola Vega led all the way to capture race two, a 1200m maiden three-year-old contest. Making it a truly special double for all concerned was the fact that both horses were sired by Rich Hill Stud-based stallion Shocking and are both bred and owned by long-time stable client, Lars Pearson. Whilst both horses produced top-class efforts it was the performance of Zelenski that really caught the eye as the strapping gelding showed he had taken plenty of improvement out of his first-up run for third at the venue earlier in the month. Rider Trudy Thornton bounced her mount away nicely from an inside barrier draw to track the solid speed set up by the two race-winners in the event, stablemate Diva Express and Jager Bombed. Angled into the clear by Thornton, Zelenski knuckled down nicely to out-finish Jager Bombed to take the victory, seemingly with plenty of petrol left in the tank. Rae was pleased with the victory as he looks ahead to next season with his charge. “I just told Trudy, please don’t push him too hard as this horse is going to go further than just a two-year-old,” he said. “He shouldn’t even be a two-year-old. “He’s very promising. “The other horse (Diva Express) probably had to work a bit hard to keep the favourite out but she will keep, this guy (Zelenski) will go a long way.” Thornton echoed Rae’s thoughts on the future prospects for Zelenski. “He’s a very nice, talented animal who is still learning and very green,” she said. “He’s got a bright future and a lot of natural ability. “The further he goes the better he is going to be.” Rae had also been confident of a bold showing from Viola Vega and so it proved as she provided rider Rowena Smyth with an armchair ride in front. “I told Rowena that she does have ability and can run so when the penny drops, she will win races,” Rae said. “She can gallop and just needs to get her head turned around a little bit.” View the full article

Perry Mason completes a comprehensive victory in the AHD Hawke’s Bay Steeplechase A thrilling front-running exhibition has seen local galloper Perry Mason cap a brilliant day for local trainers Paul Nelson and Corrina McDougal when taking out the AHD Hawke’s Bay Steeplechase (4800m) at Hastings on Saturday. Rider Aaron Kuru had earlier piloted stablemate No Change to a comprehensive victory in the Te Whangai Romneys Hawke’s Bay Hurdle (3100m) with a cool, calm and collected display and produced another gem on the nine-year-old Zed gelding. Jumping fluently throughout Perry Mason put aside any doubt his connections may have had over his ability to handle the Slow7 track as he put the pressure on his rivals a long way out in the second prestige steeplechase event of the year. Kuru slipped his mount clear with three fences to jump and never looked like stopping as he cruised to the line two lengths clear of 2018 Great Northern Steeplechase (6300m) winner Chocolate Fish with stablemate Zardetto battling on bravely for third. McDougal was fizzing with excitement as she waited to greet Perry Mason and Kuru when they returned to the Hastings birdcage. “It’s really neat and awesome with the support of everyone here,” she said. “He (Perry Mason) is a hard case, he’s pretty cruisy but can get up and truck. “We were worried the track might have been a bit firm and that Zardetto might have been the better chance, but he’s (Perry Mason) pretty cool.” Kuru, who gave up a promising softball career to pursue his riding dreams, was his usual laidback self as he described the performance and what it meant to him to win the feature jumps double. “To be fair I didn’t think the track would suit him but to his credit he was probably the fittest horse out there,” he said. “Paul had said to me earlier that fitness would get him over the line and I agreed and just went for it. “I don’t ask many questions I just get on and ride. “I’m probably a late bloomer into the racing industry, so when I got the opportunity to ride for Paul and Carol (Nelson), with them being here and me being from here, it was goal early in my career. “Now it has happened I’m just stoked.” Perry Mason has proved a revelation since being switched to steeplechasing following three wins on the flat and a victory over hurdles. He has now won four and been placed in three times from his eight steeplechasing starts and will look to further that record in the remaining steeplechase features this winter. View the full article

Sacred Magic off to an easy win on Friday night Trainer Leslie Khoo snapped a long run of outs after Sacred Magic landed the $50,000 Class 4 Division 2 race over 1200m on Friday night. The Singaporean handler has not headed down to the winner’s stall since Kubera’s Chief scored on February 17. Sacred Magic was only bringing up Khoo’s sixth win for the season, probably one of the quietest years he has gone through since he moved from Ipoh to Kranji in 2008. But the smiles were clearly back on Friday night, with Khoo bullish the worst was behind him. “At last!” he exclaimed as he led in the Battle Paint four-year-old alongside his happy owners, the Happy Stable. “My horses have actually been running well but just had no luck. It’s also hard with the new ratings system, but it is what it is. “Luckily, I have good owners who have kept supporting me. They gave me the confidence that my winning turn would come eventually. “This horse has been running well. His last run (fourth in a similar Class 4 Division 2 race but over 1400m) was not too bad. Marc (Lerner) rode him then and he rode him very well tonight. “Hopefully, now that the long wait is over, the winners will come. I have around 10 new horses who are getting ready and I hope they can bring me some more wins.” Though not the fastest away from his barrier No 1, Sacred Magic was ridden out by Lerner to take up a prominent spot on the speed. They eventually settled into the box-seat while Snip, Soldado and Country Boss set the pace three abreast. As the rails gap appeared upon straightening, Lerner wasted no time in sending Sacred Magic through. In a matter of strides, they shot straight to the lead to go and score by a widening margin of four lengths from Justice Smart with Elite Saint third another 1 ¾ lengths away. The winning time was 1min 11.42secs for the 1200m on the Polytrack. “The horse was travelling in handy behind the leaders in fourth spot,” said Lerner. “When the gap came up at the top of the straight, he kicked into another gear. I had no idea he was well so far ahead in front. “I think the switch to Polytrack helped him tonight.” Sacred Magic has now recorded four wins and three placings from 19 starts for prizemoney that has now hit around the $120,000 mark for the Happy Stable. -STC View the full article

Rule Number(s): 638(3)(b)(ii)Following the running of Race 6 (Duke Of Gloucester Cup) Information No.A11612 was filed with the Judicial Committee. It was alleged by the Informant that Mr Harrison the Rider of LOOK OUT used his whip excessively prior to the 100m. Mr Balcombe showed the film replays and said that Mr Harrison struck ...View the full article